Need help with wild baby rats

[mustangrooster]

Ok so just make sure they can’t get out of the box and in with the blankets or not you should shread up some paper and but in some straw and hamster bedding or not the blankets might be fine I wouldn’t treat the wound it will heal just like cuts heal in the wild also the reason they aren’t eating is probably because they are confused and stressed you might later want to take them somewhere to make sure they don’t have any diseases I don’t know exactly where rats nest but I would think they would nest in the dark and so you probably would want to feed the rats in the dark I have heard you can feed them sugar water but only when they are really young they also need iron so I don’t know much about the food sorry I hope I was some what of a help

Thank you!

Agree on the wildlife rehabber advice (if they won’t take them they might give you pointers), disagree on the diseases. Wash your hands before and after touching them but the chances of getting anything from a baby non-sewer living rat is next to none imho. They’re more likely to catch something from you. I’m sure everyone will disagree because rats=disease but whatever.

You might find some answers if you go to rat breeder forums or websites, but from what I know, hand rearing from such a young age is a huge challenge and often they just don’t thrive.

I think they are a type of roof rat. And yes, I have been washing my hands, also been wearing gloves when handling them, and keeping hygiene in general up. I also found on another website that the risks of wild baby rats transmitting diseases to humans are low; Most diseases that can be transferred to humans would quickly kill a baby rat. (Found that info here: http://www.ratfanclub.org/orphans.html And the baby rats look exactly like the ones pictured in the article)


They have made it through the night anyway, and thankfully I have managed to get them suckling from a bottle teat that I would use for joeys. Some are drinking more than the others, so I'm a bit worried that some aren't getting enough milk.

Rat fan club... raising orphaned rats... Look up on google Rat fan club. There should be some pointers there .... Hope it helps

Thank you.

I would make a hard choice, pets or euthanize. rats are amazing pets, perhaps my favorite, they have empathy, are very smart, can learn tricks and develop attachment to humans. so, they are amazing pets, on par with dogs in intelligence in certain ways, like being able to learn to play fetch and retrieve a specific toy by name for a reward. that said, they are potentially disastrous as farm pests. a small background population of wild rats is fine, mainly ones that can not get into an unlimited food source, like a chicken coop.

as pets they are best kept in same sex pairs, they need some company as they are communal and give each other lots of needed attention, kept alone, they become neurotic. they become breeding age as early as 6 weeks and can not be kept insexed pairs or you will end up with litters of more babies every month, having as many as 20 babies at a time.

I don't think there is anything wrong with keeping wild rats as pets, but treat the initial phase of care as a quarantine and treat for lice and worms if need be. I would not let small children handle them initially till quarentine is over and adults have handled them without issue of disease. (children are most susceptible) get them cleaned up inside with good food, and medication if need be. eventually you develop comfort and trust with handling. there is some slight risk of serious communicable disease initially.

I make no bones about it, I keep rat traps galore outside around the coop and keep the pet rats behind bars inside, when they are not on our shoulders playing around.

Thank you for this information

I've decided to give it my best go at raising them, which is what I always seem to do. However, I'm not sure if I plan on keeping them as pets or releasing them. If I'm going to be releasing them...handling needs to be kept to a minimum... but If I'm going to be keeping them as pets...they need to be handled everyday...guess I must decide quickly.


They have each other for company and to socialize with, it’s just the feeding that I'm worried about. (How much they need to have per feed) If they were to not survive I feel it would be because of the feeding issue. I'll see how the first week goes and if they survive, I’ll decided what I will do with them.

When they reach a point where they are grown to be on their own perhaps relocating far away .From human population if youe able and they seem still wild enough...just a thought

Yep, will consider

 

[MochaDuck]

Hi all,


Hoping to get a bid of advice. So around 5 hours ago, we found 4 baby orphan rats. I’m sure it was a nest of 6 but I think one of the dogs got two of them. Nearly positive that the mum was killed by the dog, (don’t know if it was the mum or the dad) but another one of the parents got eaten by a snake (We saw it.)


I’m unsure on what to do. I have done lots of research but still can’t seem to find the answers that I need. This isn’t the first time I have raised rats before, I've taken care of a new born rat before...but that was years ago. Now that I have found a nest of 4, I feel like I don’t have the slightest idea on what to do. I have a lot of experience with orphan animal after raising joeys, baby birds etc but I haven’t raised a group of rats before. They look to be 2 weeks old, but are very bouncy which makes me think they could be 3 weeks old? Not sure. They are in a box all snuggled up together in the materials that I use for Joeys, so they are warm, but I can tell that they are stressed out by me being around.


I have been trying to feed them, but they don’t want any warm milk or any solids, what can I do?


I have some other questions; however, any information is greatly appreciated.


- How often do they need to be fed? I read every 2 hours for new-borns, but what about 2/3 week olds?


- When can they start having solids? They won’t touch any food.


-How much milk (in ml) should they have per feed?


-How warm do they need to be? They do have fur, but I did put a heat pack in there for them (I made sure it wasn't too hot) However they preferred to just snuggle up together in the blankets rather than be by the heat source; is that enough for them to keep warm?


-Also, one of them has a small cut by the base of its tail, should I clean it or just leave it to heal by itself? I'm not sure what it got cut by, maybe the dog, but they're so small and squirmy so it would be hard to treat.


-What milk can I use?


I really need some advice asap, as I really want to ensure these guys have the best chance of survival. That’s all the questions I can think of currently, but if you guys have any advice or information, I would love to hear it. Thank you!

If they won't eat solids yet, take the milk you choose (I think goats milk may work), dip a clean paintbrush in the milk, and let them suck the milk off, and repeat until they're full.

Are they using the bathroom on their own? If not, take a warm, moist q-tip or paper towel and wipe their... you know, until they release waste.

 

[cassie]

To all the doom and gloom folks, PHOOEY!! Years ago I raised a baby pack rat and he made a fine pet. He was so young when I got him his eyes weren't open and he didn't have any hair. I fed him on slightly diluted canned milk with an eyedropper every two hours during the day and every three or four hours at night. My neighbor had a squirrel for years that he raised from a baby. I would go on the pet rat forum and see what you can find and also talk to a wildlife rehab for advice. When my rat was a baby I kept him in a small box with cotton and kleenex for a nest. Since you have several, they ought to be able to keep each other warm. From the post it wasn't quite clear to me how mature they are. If they have teeth, they can eat solids. I would offer some oatmeal. Hopefully they will calm down. Good luck!!

 

[Little Jerry Seinfeld]

Seriously, they’re asking for help for raising babies and you call them varmints?

Rats do carry lots of diseases. Hantavirus, rat bite fever, LCMV, etc. Guess what else carries diseases? Literally everything. Your chickens, the wild birds in your yard, your dogs, cats, children.. If you follow basic biosecurity measures, quarantine as the above poster said, wash your hands, the chances of getting a disease is no more than it would be from a litter of barn cats. I think if the original poster has raised wild animals before then they know the risk; their question wasn’t about rodent diseases.

I don't think they meant offence, varmint is just what a lot of people call that class of animals. Better than what I call them- vermin. But I don't mean any offence when I call small animals that either, it's just what my family has always called squirrels, mice, other small rodents. Heck I even call my dachshunds vermin on occasion
I think you're right they should have success if they follow the advice on safe handling, and especially the great advice all have given about not letting them breed.
To the op, wow you have a big heart! my only desire upon finding baby rats would be to scream and send my dachshunds to eat them. :/

 

[mustangrooster]

If they won't eat solids yet, take the milk you choose (I think goats milk may work), dip a clean paintbrush in the milk, and let them suck the milk off, and repeat until they're full.

Are they using the bathroom on their own? If not, take a warm, moist q-tip or paper towel and wipe their... you know, until they release waste.

That paintbrush method sounds a lot easier than feeding them with a syringe and teat, thank you! When I got up to feed them last night, I stimulated them all, however none of them went toilet. Not sure if they are going by themselves, but I will try a warm q-tip this time.

To all the doom and gloom folks, PHOOEY!! Years ago I raised a baby pack rat and he made a fine pet. He was so young when I got him his eyes weren't open and he didn't have any hair. I fed him on slightly diluted canned milk with an eyedropper every two hours during the day and every three or four hours at night. My neighbor had a squirrel for years that he raised from a baby. I would go on the pet rat forum and see what you can find and also talk to a wildlife rehab for advice. When my rat was a baby I kept him in a small box with cotton and kleenex for a nest. Since you have several, they ought to be able to keep each other warm. From the post it wasn't quite clear to me how mature they are. If they have teeth, they can eat solids. I would offer some oatmeal. Hopefully they will calm down. Good luck!!

Thank you for sharing this! Gives me some hope


Yep, they have teeth, but don’t seem to want any solids yet. I did offer them some oatmeal, but they sniffed it and walked away. I’m thinking I could add some cereal (Like Weet-bix’s, because it will become mushy anyway) to their milk? That’s how I weaned our little orphan pig, so I'm thinking it might work for rats too.

To the op, wow you have a big heart! my only desire upon finding baby rats would be to scream and send my dachshunds to eat them. :/

Thank you! I have a habit of rescuing orphan animals.... I mean, if I had come upon a nest of orphan.... kittens, I would have wanted to help them, so why not rats. I know that If I was a tiny orphan rat, unable to help myself, I would prefer for someone to help me rather than to freeze to death
















Would anyone like to see pictures?

 

[MochaDuck]

That paintbrush method sounds a lot easier than feeding them with a syringe and teat, thank you! When I got up to feed them last night, I stimulated them all, however none of them went toilet. Not sure if they are going by themselves, but I will try a warm q-tip this time.




Thank you for sharing this! Gives me some hope


Yep, they have teeth, but don’t seem to want any solids yet. I did offer them some oatmeal, but they sniffed it and walked away. I’m thinking I could add some cereal (Like Weet-bix’s, because it will become mushy anyway) to their milk? That’s how I weaned our little orphan pig, so I'm thinking it might work for rats too.




Thank you! I have a habit of rescuing orphan animals.... I mean, if I had come upon a nest of orphan.... kittens, I would have wanted to help them, so why not rats. I know that If I was a tiny orphan rat, unable to help myself, I would prefer for someone to help me rather than to freeze to death
















Would anyone like to see pictures?

YES!!!

 

[Tesumph]

I don't think they meant offence, varmint is just what a lot of people call that class of animals. Better than what I call them- vermin. But I don't mean any offence when I call small animals that either, it's just what my family has always called squirrels, mice, other small rodents. Heck I even call my dachshunds vermin on occasion
I think you're right they should have success if they follow the advice on safe handling, and especially the great advice all have given about not letting them breed.
To the op, wow you have a big heart! my only desire upon finding baby rats would be to scream and send my dachshunds to eat them. :/

You’re right, I got too defensive. I guess on a forum full of open minded people who have backyard chickens and are often willing to do the “unusual,” (at home veterinary care, culling birds, emergency incubating) I never expect the amount of disdain other animals like snakes and rats get. Oh well. :/



I would love to see pictures.

 

[Birdinhand]

Would anyone like to see pictures?

heck yes!

 

[AlleysChicks]

Honestly if it’s wild, leave it in the wild. Wildlife rehabilitation is best left to the professionals. They can take the proper steps.

 

[mustangrooster]

Alright, will get pictures soon! Just fed them, the paintbrush worked very well. Yesterday they just had skim milk as that was better for them than full cream milk, but we were able to get soy milk for them today. Looks like there are 3 boys and 1 girl They are very cute, almost like little 2 week old puppies. They are warming up to me, starting to get a bit more braver and enjoying just snuggling in the winter gloves I use when I feed them.

Honestly if it’s wild, leave it in the wild. Wildlife rehabilitation is best left to the professionals. They can take the proper steps.

My family and I are registered wildlife careers, rats are just a whole new thing to me